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School Spirit
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Wikipedia article
'School Spirit' is a 1985 American comedy film about a college student who is killed in a car accident and returns as a ghost to haunt his school. The film was directed by Alan Holleb, and stars Tom Nolan, Roberta Collins, and Larry Linville.
It was one of the first films from Roger Corman's new distribution company, Concorde Pictures, along with films like 'Barbarian Queen', 'Loose Screws', 'Cocaine Wars', and 'Wheels of Fire'.HANDICAPPING THE OSCAR FIELD: [Home Edition] London, Michael. Los Angeles Times 22 Mar 1985: 1.MOVIE REVIEW `COCAINE WARS' TOES THE LOW-BUDGET LINE: [Home Edition]
Wilmington, Michael. Los Angeles Times 10 Feb 1986: 7. Corman said he had to form his own distribution company because the owners of New World Pictures which he sold refused to distribute this and 'Wheels of Fire'.
Cast
*Tom Nolan as Billy Batson
*Danile Arnaud as Madeleine
*Elizabeth Foxx as Judith Hightower
*John Finnegan as Pinky Batson
*Larry Linville as President Grimshaw
*Roberta Collins as Helen Grimshaw
*Marta Kober as Ursula Grimshaw
*Nick Segal as Gregg
*Frank Mugavero as Lasky
*Toni Hudson as Rita
Production
The film was based on an idea of Geoffrey Bare called 'College Ghost' about a campus Casanova who comes back as a ghost to help a nerd get laid. He pitched it unsuccessfully, but director Allan Holleb felt it had possibilities. They adjusted the script and ended up selling it to Roger Corman, who had worked with Holleb on 'Candy Stripe Nurses'. Corman agreed to help make the film.Borseti p 204-205
Holleb says one of his inspirations was the Italian film 'Il Sorpasso' (1962).Borseti p 206
Some of the finance came from a consortium of Indian doctors. It had been arranged by Ashok Amritraj, who became a successful producer.Borseti p 206
Scenes at college were filmed at a veterans' hospital in Brentwood.Borseti p 206
The special effects were done in the style of old 'Topper' movies due to the low budget.Borseti p 207
Reception
'The' 'Philadelphia Daily News' called it "an affably low-rent soft-core item that dares to tackle such compelling subjects as life, death, mortality, morality and overaged schoolgirls who like to flex their mammary glands."'SCHOOL SPIRIT': AS SOFT-CORE, IT'S A SUPER BORE
BALTAKE, JOE. Philadelphia Daily News29 Oct 1985: 52.
The 'Los Angeles Times' called it a "vulgar, ugly looking little film of no visual distinction or ambition."A FAILING GRADE FOR 'SCHOOL SPIRIT' Wilmington, Michael. Los Angeles Times 17 Dec 1985: g5.
The 'Philadelphia Inquirer' critic wrote, "By my count, there are 37 naked female breasts in the movie... (one aspiring actress appears only in profile; she must have a bad agent). I mention this because there's really no other reason for the movie to exist. There are no hot sex scenes, no terrific new jokes, no remotely funny performances. Just jiggle, jiggle, jiggle... a cheapo, one-gimmick teen sex comedy that's so thin and so exploitative that it couldn't even interest a minor distribution company."FILM: MINDLESS 'SCHOOL SPIRIT' FLUNKS OUT
Lyman, Rick. Philadelphia Inquirer26 Oct 1985: C.5.
See also
* List of ghost films
References
Notes
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